The present disclosure is generally directed to electrical component mounting assemblies for securely mounting an electrical component such as a capacitor, diode or resistor to a printed circuit board (PCB) or to another mounting member. In particular, the present disclosure is directed to a mounting assembly having a sleeve for receiving a cylindrical electrical component, a housing having a cylindrical chamber that cooperates with the sleeve to securely retain the cylindrical electrical component therein and mounting posts for mounting the housing to a PCB or other mounting member. More specifically, a mounting assembly is disclosed herein that has a housing with a base and a tapered chamber for receiving therein one of a plurality of unique diameter electrical components having a sleeve substantially surrounding each electrical component, typically wherein the housing is mounted to a PCB such that the base of the housing is elevated above the PCB. Each sleeve is dimensioned to receive one of the unique diameter electrical components and can accommodate some deviations of the diameter of the electrical component, and the cooperation of the tapered sleeve and tapered chamber securely retains the electrical component to the housing.
Electrical components such as capacitors, diodes, resistors and the like are typically mounted directly to PCBs by connecting the leads of the electrical component to the PCB through soldering and the like. In some circumstances, such mounting is not feasible. In particular, some PCBs are placed in tight surroundings that restrict capacitors from being mounted in a vertical orientation. In addition, certain environments such as high vibration environments found in the automotive and/or avionic industries require more robust mounting of the capacitor to the PCB. Furthermore, it may be desirable to avoid soldering the electrical component to the PCB and instead use compliant push pin terminals to connect the component to the PCB.
In some applications, cylindrical electrical components such as electrolytic capacitors are mounted via a housing that has a chamber to receive one of the electrical components. These housings are typically mounted directly to or flush against the PCB and have openings to allow the passage of the leads of the electrical component for electrical connection to the PCB. As cylindrical electrolytic capacitors can come in various diameters and lengths, these applications typically require a separate housing for each unique diameter and length component. Also, mounting of these types of housings occupies more space on the PCB which is a valuable commodity. Additionally, some of these applications use an epoxy to retain capacitors to the housing and to prevent dislodgement of the capacitors from the housings due to environmental effects such as vibration, thermal expansion and contraction or deviations in the diameter and/or length of the capacitor.
When direct mounting of a cylindrical electrical component in vertical orientation to a PCB is not feasible, when solderless connection is desired, or when a low profile assembly is required with limited component mounting space on the PCB, the electrical component mounting assemblies described herein can provide advantages over previously known electrical component mounting arrangements. Cylindrical electrical component mounting assemblies of the present disclosure can include a housing with a chamber for receiving a cylindrical electrical component in a horizontal or vertical orientation and have at least two posts for mounting the housing to the PCB in a predetermined raised position above the surface of the PCB or flush against the PCB. The electrical component mounting assemblies disclosed herein secure the electrical component to the housing without the use of epoxy or other adhesive compounds through use of a cooperating tapered sleeve and a tapered housing chamber. The sleeve can have a passage or opening extending the length of the sleeve, and the sleeve can be dimensioned to accept electrical components having a common diameter. The sleeve can exhibit resilient closeability both to accommodate variation or deviation in the electrical component's diameter and to compress about the electrical component to retain it within the housing.
In keeping with the present disclosure, the electrical component mounting assemblies can reduce the complexity of having a different housing for every differently sized electrical component by providing one housing that can secure electrical components having different diameters and their associated sleeves. In other words, electrical mounting assemblies as described herein can have a housing that securely accepts one of a plurality of unique diameter electrical components and their associated sleeves. The housing can also include a terminal support structure for supporting termination contacts for electrically connecting the leads of the electrical component to the PCB. The termination contacts can be selected from those requiring soldering to both the leads and the PCB or those having mechanical solderless connection to one or both the leads and the PCB.